Refrigerator.



. E. RANNEY.

REFRIGERATOR.

APPLIGATION FILED Nov. 24, 190B.

Patented Apr. 26, 1910.

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Specication'of Letters latent.'

v rnn`imfarciirn. sanitair, orfcfiaiiriirvrrmn,I`irrrcrrreaitr.A

.ra-tentes Apr. 2c, i910.

Application filed November 24,' -1908. Serial No. 464,211.

:To all4 whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that :[Fnnnnnioir E. Raro Nar a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of Greenville, in the vcounty of Montcalm and State of Michi an, have in .ventedpcertain new and us'eful .Improvei'nents inRefri craters; and' l do hereby declarethat the following is a full, clear, and exact, description thereof, reference being .hadr to the accompanying drawings, and to thefnumerals of reference marked thereon,

jivhichuform a part of this specification. ;--',I,`his invention relates to improvements in y refrigerators and refers more specifically lf'to,.aE.,cushioning device upon which to supx`portthe ice chamber of ,fa refrigerator.

.;,-The invention consists in the matters here-f [,inatterl set f ,th and more particularly -za-.chamber an,

`,pointed out lin the appended claims.

u objects of the invention is to provide a4 suitable cushioning device upon fwhich the ice chamber-,of the refrigerator ,.rests, so". arranged as `toabsorb the jars or fshocks Jorou ht upon the partsof the ice other parts of the refrigerator :incident l.upon `placing ice Within the ice chamber, thereby avoiding liability of breaking or racking the parts.

n. `.Ax further object of lthe invention is to gdljprovide-a cushioning device for this pur- .posewhich is so arranged as to interpose an l additional air space between the provision provision chamber.

chamber and the ice chamber, thus reducing condensation at thetop wall or roof of the A further object of the invention is to arrange a cushioning device of this character in such manner as to direct water which may collect thereon to the usual drain de vices of the' refrigerator.

As shown in the drawings z-Figure 1 is a partial vertical-'section of a refrigerator equipped with a'cushioning device embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section thereof taken'in a plane at right angles to the plane of the section of Fig. 1. Fig.

3 is a horizontal section of the refrigerator,

showing the cushioning devices in plan view. ig. 4 is an enlarged transverse section of one .of the cushioning devices Fig.

5 is an enlarged vertical 'sectional view, broken away, of the cushioning devices rind ice chamber and the parts which sustainthe saine, ioning devices being taken on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmenthe section through one of the cush.

necting the two mem ers of the cushionin device. Fig. 7 is an enlarged plan view o one of the cushioning devices, partially lower members thereof.

As shown in the drawings, 10 designates,'

as a whole, the refrigerator box, and 11 the swinging lid thereof.

1,2 designates an ice chamber which, as herein shown, is a removable chamber, and 13v designates an ice rack of common form therein. Saidice chamber is sustained on ledges 15, 15 fixed to the inner sides of the front and rear Walls of the refrigerator, said chamber being directly supported on cushioning devicesd, 16 which eirtend'hetween and are supported at their endson said ledges 15. In the present arrangement the cushioning devices constitute the top wall of the provision chamber 17.

tary view illustratin the'manner of con-v vbroken away,to show both the upper and The refrigerator may be equipped with the usual drain devices comprising a drain pipe 18 at the rear wall of the provision chamber 17 arranged to receive the water of 'condensation from the ice chamber through a drain opening 19.

20, 2O designate troughs which may be arranged at the rear side of the upper part of the provision chamber and may be inclined downwardly and inwardly from the ends of the'v chamber to the flaring top of the pipe 153i.`

Referring now to the construction and arrangement of the cushioning devices 16 it one at each side of the vertical plane of the central air flue of the ice chamber. They are supported at their front and rear ends on the ledges 15 and the bottom of the ice chamber 12 rests thereon. Said cushioning devices each consists of anupper member 22 and a lower member 23and may be made of galvanized sheet metal. Said upper and lower members are separated at their central 'will bev observed that in the lconstruction vshown two of such devices are employed,

parts by spacing devices v25 whereby an air space is provided between said members.l Said spacing devices 25, 25 are arranged longitudinally'of the cushioning devices and may have thelform of sheet metal tubes. They may be soldered to said members whereby to hold them in place. The upper and lower members of each cushioning ,device are'connected at their side margins. As a means for connecting the marginal parts [ofh the upper and llower members'foiie of said members, the upper member as herein `shown,niay be formed atits sidel margins `to proyide rolled or tubular portions 26, ,the

terinnia'll margins 27 of which rolls extend v intogfliefnterior of the; rolls and-engage` elongated hooks 28 on, lower member,

which lat-t2. mar s extend -into said rolls. .The para; lay e crimped I upon which the ice chamber and serves to relieve or absorb together o`r united by solder suitably applied. The arrangement described produces ahollow cushioningdevice whiclnv is made thickestat its transverse center and tapers ,toward .its margins vvhere they are joined by the 'rolls 26. Said rolls constitute the supports for the device at the sides thereof, and the central or deepest part of the device is supported on the central-'part of the lower p member. This arrangemei'it gives a spring or f 'decreases liability of such blows or shocks vor otherwise forme .breaking the bottom wall of the ice chamber. By reason of a hollow the-cushioning devices, additional air spaces are provided between the rov-ision chamber and the ice in the lice c amber, thereby7 affording increased insulation between the top wall4 of the provision chamber and the ice within the ice chamber. The liability of condensation upon the saidupper wall of the provision chamber is thereby decreased. As a further improvement the upper members of the cushionin devices are corrugated d to provide on their upper surfaces grooves 29 which extend from front to rear of the refrigerator. By reason of the presence of such grooves in the u per walls of thev cushioning devices 4and o the inclination 'thereof toward the rear Wall of the margins of the construction ofA the refrigerator, as shown in Figs. 2'and 5, water which may find its Way to or collect upon the upper members of the cushioning devices will be directed to the drain troughs -20 or to other suitable place for disposal of sucli'waten Iti will be understood-that the essential "featuresof my invention may be embodied in structures differing in structural details from those-herein shown, and `I do not limit" myselfto the particular construction illustrated exceptv as hereinafter'made the subject of specific claims.

Iclaiin as my invention 1 y l. In a refrigerator, the combination with the ice chamber and supports on the walls of the refrigerator' box for sustainingthe ice chamber, of a cushioning device arranged between said supports and the ice chamber, and comprising upper an'adower sheet metal members and interposed spacing members, one of said-members being provided at its side margins with rolls, and the side mar! gins of the other member being interlocked with the terminall margins of said rolls.

2. In a refrigerator, the combination with the ice chamber and supports on the walls ,of the refrigerator for sustaining the ice chamber, of cushioning devices interposed between said supports and ice chamber, said cushioning devices comprising upper and lower sheet metal members, and spacing members interposed between the same, the upper members of said cushioning devices being formedwith grooves or corrugations to aord means for draining water therefrom. Y

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my invention I aflix my si presence of two witnesses, this 16th day of Novemberrl. D. 1908.

FREDERICK E. RANN EY.

' Witnesses: EDWIN Rr CHiiisTENSEN, -WALTER K. WARD.

ature in the 

